Shockwaves in France: Ex-Minister Rachida Dati on Trial for Renault-Nissan Corruption
The Paris criminal court has opened the trial of Rachida Dati, who faces charges including passive corruption for receiving €900,000 from Renault-Nissan while serving as an MEP. The proceedings will scrutinize whether the payments were for legal services or concealed lobbying, with Carlos Ghosn, also implicated, notably absent from court.
The trial of Rachida Dati commenced on Wednesday afternoon before the Paris criminal court, bringing to light serious allegations against the former justice and culture minister. Dati is facing charges of passive corruption, passive influence-peddling, and concealment of abuse of power and breach of trust. These charges stem from a substantial sum of €900,000 she received between 2009 and 2013 from RNBV, a Dutch subsidiary of the Renault-Nissan alliance, during her tenure as a Member of the European Parliament.
A significant aspect of the opening day was the notable absence of Carlos Ghosn, the former head of Renault-Nissan. Ghosn, who has been residing in Lebanon since his escape from Japan in 2019, is also being prosecuted in absentia for active corruption and influence-peddling in relation to the same case. He had requested a postponement of the hearing via a letter to the court, citing improper service, and expressed his readiness to participate in the proceedings via videoconference.
Over the course of six half-days of hearings, scheduled until September 28, the court will meticulously examine the intricate relationship between Rachida Dati and Carlos Ghosn. The primary focus will be on determining the true nature of the services that purportedly corresponded to the €900,000 paid by RNBV. The core dispute revolves around whether these payments were for legitimate legal work or concealed lobbying activities.
Rachida Dati steadfastly maintains that her work for the group was exclusively that of a lawyer and vehemently denies any involvement in lobbying within the European Parliament. Her legal team supports this stance, dismissing the prosecution's case as an "intellectual construct" and asserting that their client performed only legal duties.
In stark contrast, the prosecution argues that the fee agreement signed in 2009 was a deliberate mechanism to camouflage lobbying activities. Investigating magistrates have pointed to the scarcity of documents that could, in their assessment, substantiate the reality and full scope of the legal services allegedly provided. Furthermore, they consider the remuneration to be "totally disproportionate" to the documented work.
Investigators have specifically scrutinized several interventions made by Rachida Dati in the European Parliament, including three parliamentary questions submitted in 2012 and 2013, all related to the automotive sector. The prosecution postulates that her parliamentary duties may have been improperly influenced by her professional ties with Renault.
The potential consequences for Rachida Dati are severe, including a maximum sentence of ten years in prison, a €450,000 fine, and a possible prohibition from holding public office. She retains the presumption of innocence until the court renders its decision. Carlos Ghosn, who continues to dispute the allegations, will remain absent from the dock in Lebanon. His non-attendance adds a unique dimension to this trial, which aims to definitively establish whether the €900,000 paid to Rachida Dati was indeed for bona fide legal services or if it was used to conceal lobbying, an activity that was prohibited for MEPs at the time.